Biomedical journals that charge nothing to publish
1,290 of the journals we track charge no publication fee at all — and 299 are DOAJ-listed with an h-index above 25. Free to publish does not mean marginal.
Published 21 August 2026
There is a widespread assumption that open access means paying. It does not. 1,290 of the 11,447 biomedical journals we track record no article processing charge at all, and 299 of those are DOAJ-listed with an h-index above 25.
This model has a name — diamond or platinum open access — and it means somebody other than the author is paying: a learned society, a university, a government agency, or a national research council.
Some of the strongest journals in the field charge nothing
| Journal | h-index | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Applied and Environmental Microbiology | 479 | American Society for Microbiology |
| Journal of Virology | 422 | American Society for Microbiology |
| Journal of Bacteriology | 396 | American Society for Microbiology |
| Journal of Clinical Microbiology | 367 | American Society for Microbiology |
| Infection and Immunity | 335 | American Society for Microbiology |
| Emerging Infectious Diseases | 329 | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
| Bulletin of the World Health Organization | 201 | World Health Organization |
| Health Technology Assessment | 199 | NIHR Journals Library |
These are not marginal venues. The American Society for Microbiology runs a large portfolio on society funding, and the CDC and WHO publish as a public function. An h-index of 479 with a $0 fee is a real option, not a loophole.
Who pays, and why it matters to you
Learned societies fund journals from membership dues. Publishing there is often easier if you are a member, and review tends to be specialist.
Government and intergovernmental bodies — the CDC, WHO, national institutes — publish as part of a public health remit. These are usually strict on methodology and slower, because there is no commercial pressure to move volume.
Universities and national consortia run journals as scholarly infrastructure. Quality varies more here than in the other two categories, so check the specific title rather than assuming.
The practical consequence: because nobody is paying per article, these journals have no financial incentive to accept your paper. That usually means a more honest review — and it means they can afford to reject you.
One thing to check before you celebrate
“No article processing charge” in DOAJ means exactly that — no APC. It does not always mean no money changes hands. A minority of journals levy submission fees, page charges or colour-figure charges instead. DOAJ records this separately, and we flag it on the journal page where it applies.
Before you submit, find the fee page and read it. If a journal cannot state its charges in writing before submission, that is your answer regardless of what any directory says.
Finding the right one for your paper
Scope matters more here than anywhere else. Free journals are concentrated in microbiology, public health and regional medicine, and thin in some clinical specialties. If nothing free fits your subject, a waiver on a fee-charging journal is usually the better route — 78% of DOAJ journals that charge a fee say they will waive it.